2016 Library Report

Published on November 25, 2016

Library Resource Centre 2016

The Library Staff revel in supporting the teaching and learning programs of our school. In addition, our year is also enriched by managing students undertaking Distance Education studies; weekly Chess Coaching; school and interschool Chess Tournaments; five teams for this year’s Opti-MINDS Challenge, six Readers’ Cup challenges and our first foray into the international Kids Lit Quiz. We have celebrated with students, as they have achieved success in these endeavours, with the addition of four first place trophies on the Library counter, representation at the State Final of the Opti-MINDS Challenge and representation at the Australian Final of the Kids Lit Quiz in Sydney.

61 students from all year levels have been enrolled in 22 different courses at the Brisbane, Cairns or Charleville Schools of Distance Education. The most popular of these continue to be languages, including Chinese, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese and Spanish. Senior students, who attend two weekly classes from 8-9am, also arrive at 7.15am to complete their mid and end of semester tests, and many younger students attend their online classes during lunch breaks. It is rewarding to continue to see exceptional academic results from these students.

This year’s Book Week celebrations in August featured Australia: Story Country with Storytime, a dedicated reading event, led by School Captains, Jaya Fisher Price, Eli Wensley and Mercedes Woodrow. After readings of the Shortlisted Early Childhood and Picture Books vying for Book of the Year in the Children’s’ Book Council of Australia annual awards, students voted to predict the winners. We celebrated a book and papercraft day, a Covers Competition and our inaugural Harry Potter Trivia Quiz led by English teacher Ms Shailee Thompson, complete with many teachers and students in robes. This ‘interhouse’ competition resulted in a Year 10 Team from Hufflepuff the winners.

Our online Library catalogue allows students to search and reserve items, track their current and past loans, well as send reviews of what they have read. Reading for pleasure is as popular as ever, with the physical book proving to be a point of choice for many students seeking a break from their electronic devices. Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series has been the most popular read of the year. Borrowing rates significantly exceed last year’s, with fiction and graphic readers still topping the recreational reading choices.